A Developing Discourse In Music Education

In the World Library of Educationalists series, international experts compile career-long collections of what they judge to be their finest pieces – extracts from books, key articles, salient research findings, major theoretical and practical contributions – so the world can read them in a single manageable volume. Readers will be able to follow the themes and strands and see how their work contributes to the development of the field. Since the publication of A Basis for Music Education in 1979, Keith Swanwick has continued to be a major influence on the theory and practice of music education. The international appeal of his insights into the fundamentals of music and music education is recognised in invitations from more than twenty countries to give Key Note presentations, conduct workshops, and advise as a consultant. These include such diverse places as Kazakhstan, Colombia, Iceland and Papua New Guinea. During 1998 he was Visiting Professor, University of Washington. In this collection, Swanwick brings together 12 of his key writings to present an overview of the development of his own work and of the field of music education. The text allows the reader to consider Swanwick’s approach to music education and how it is characterised by a concern for musical, and to some extent wider artistic, processes, shaped by his experience as a teacher and performing musician in a variety of settings, and also by the influences of philosophers, psychologists and sociologists.

Valid and reliable assessment of students' work.

The teaching of the arts and literacy in schools is often at odds with one another. The desire for schools to improve results on high-stakes testing can lead to a narrow view of literacy rather than one that acknowledges the unique and distinct literacies that exist in other curriculum areas including the arts. With methods of communication becoming increasingly complex, it will be more and more important for students to be able to utilise all semiotic modes. Developing Literacy and the Arts in Schools investigates this key issue in education and offers a solution to the negative relationship between the arts and literacy. Drawing on interview data and evidence from diverse classrooms, it explores the pedagogies of effective arts practitioners and teachers, and how they relate to theoretical frameworks, to unpack the key elements of effective practice related to literacy and the arts. A model of arts-literacies is provided to assist arts and literacy educators in developing a common language that acknowledges and values these distinct arts-literacies. Themes of multimodality, diversity, aesthetics and reflection in relation to the arts and literacy are foregrounded throughout. This book will be of great value to postgraduate students of Education specialising in arts and literacy, education academics, teacher educators, and classroom and preservice teachers.

The historical contexts of music education -- Music as sociocultural phenomenon : interactions with music education -- Philosophical perspectives of music education -- Meaning and experience : the music learner -- The learner in community -- Music learning and musical development -- Curriculum -- Assessing music learning -- Methods and approaches -- Choosing music literature -- Music education technology -- Issues facing music teacher education in the 21st century : developing leaders in the field -- The inquiring music teacher -- Framing a professional life : music teacher development through collaboration and leadership.

This book examines the inter-relationship between music learning and teaching, and culture and society: a relationship that is crucial to comprehend in today’s classrooms. The author presents case studies from diverse music learning and teaching contexts – including South India and Australia and online learning environments – to compare the modes of transmission teachers use to share their music knowledge and skills. It is imperative to understand the ways in which culture and society can in fact influence music teachers’ beliefs and experiences: and in understanding, there is potential to improve intercultural approaches to music education more generally. In increasingly diverse schools, the author highlights the need for culturally appropriate approaches to music planning, assessment and curricula. Thus, music teachers and learners will be able to understand the diversity of music education, and be encouraged to embrace a variety of methods and approaches in their own teaching. This inspiring book will be of interest and value to all those involved in teaching and learning music in various contexts.

To what extent does research on musical development impact on educational practices in school and the community? Do musicians from classical and popular traditions develop their identities in different ways? What do teachers and learners take into consideration when assessing progress? This book takes a fresh look at 'the musician' and what constitutes 'development' within the fields of music psychology and music education. In doing so, it explores the relationship between formative experiences and the development of the musician in a range of music education settings. It includes the perspectives of classroom teachers, popular musicians, classical musicians and music educators in higher education. Drawn from an international community of experienced educators and researchers, the contributors offer a range of approaches to research. From life history through classroom observation to content analysis, each section offers competing and complementary perspectives on contemporary practice. The book is an essential resource for musicians, educators, researchers and policy makers, offering insight into the reality of practice from those working within established traditions - such as the conservatoire and school settings - and from those who are currently emerging as significant forces in the fields of popular music education and community music.

Teaching Music Differently explores what music teachers do and why. It offers insightful analysis of eight in-depth studies of teachers in a range of settings – the early years, a special school, primary and secondary schools, a college, a prison, a conservatoire and a community choir – and demonstrates that pedagogy is not simply the delivery of a curriculum or an enactment of a teaching plan. Rather, a teacher’s pedagogy is complex, nuanced and influenced by a multitude of factors. Exploring the theories teachers hold about their own teaching, it reveals that, even when teachers are engaged with the same subject, their teaching varies substantially. It analyses the differences in terms of agency – the knowledge and skills that teachers bring to teaching, their expectations shaped by their life histories, the ways in which they relate to their students and the subject and their ideas about the content they teach – what is important, what is interesting, what is difficult for students to grasp. It also explores the constraints that are imposed upon the teachers – by curriculum, policy, institutions, society and the students themselves. Together with discussion of key ideas for understanding the case studies, historical influences on music pedagogy and the main discourses around music teaching, Teaching Music Differently invites all music education professionals to consider their own responses to pedagogical discourses and to use these discourses to further the development of the profession as a whole.